CN118019588A - Method for treating a fine-grain stream originating from a waste treatment installation - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method of treating a fines stream in a Material Recovery Facility (MRF), comprising: providing an MRF particulate stream comprising a friable material and a ductile material; subjecting the MRF particulate stream to a single pass dynamic comminution stage producing a comminuted material comprising a reduced size fraction derived from the friable material and an oversized fraction derived from the ductile material; taking out the crushed material from the power crusher; the crushed material is subjected to separation, producing a reduced size stream and an oversized stream. A system is also provided that includes a power pulverizer, a pulverizer conveyor, and a screen operably coupled to the pulverizer conveyor to receive the pulverized flow and produce a reduced-size flow and an oversized flow. The system may also include a magnetic separator and a dust collection system located upstream and downstream of the powered shredder, respectively.

Description

Method for treating a fine-grain stream originating from a waste treatment installation

Technical Field

The art generally relates to waste treatment facilities, such as Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs), as well as composting and waste sorting facilities, and the treatment of fines (fines) streams from such facilities.

Background

Waste treatment in MRFs and other facilities typically produces a fines stream after removal of larger items, and the fines stream is typically sent to a landfill without further treatment or recovery. Further processing of such fines streams using conventional techniques is not efficient.

Disclosure of Invention

According to one aspect, there is provided a method of treating a fines stream in a Material Recovery Facility (MRF), comprising: providing an MRF particulate stream comprising a brittle material including glass, ceramic, drywall, tile, rock and/or aggregate and a ductile material including plastic; subjecting the MRF particulate stream to a single pass dynamic comminution stage wherein the particulate stream is fed into a dynamic pulverizer and undergoes self-collisions by eddy currents within the dynamic pulverizer to produce a comminuted material comprising a reduced size fraction derived from the friable material and an oversized fraction derived from the ductile material; taking out the crushed material from the power crusher; the crushed material is subjected to separation, producing a reduced size stream and an oversized stream.

In at least one embodiment, the fines stream originates from Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) or from a source-separated recyclable.

In at least one embodiment, the fines stream is a compost screen (compost overs) stream.

In at least one embodiment, the fine particle stream comprises material having a size of less than 2 inches.

In at least one embodiment, the power pulverizer operates at a rotational speed of between 500RPM and 1,200RPM.

In at least one embodiment, the power pulverizer operates at a rotational speed between 700RPM and 1,000 RPM.

In at least one embodiment, the dynamic pulverizer is operated such that the reduced size fraction is substantially sand-sized or silt-sized particles.

In at least one embodiment, the fines stream has a moisture content of 10% to 50% upon entering the dynamic pulverizer.

In at least one embodiment, the fines stream has a moisture content of 15% to 40% upon entering the dynamic pulverizer.

In at least one embodiment, the fines stream does not undergo a drying stage upstream of the dynamic comminution stage.

In at least one embodiment, the reduced size fraction is a homogeneous mixture in the crushed output stream.

In at least one embodiment, the dynamic pulverizing stage achieves dewatering of the fine particle stream such that the dewatering in the dynamic pulverizing stage is between 5% and 8%.

In at least one embodiment, the dynamic comminution stage and separation enable the reduced size stream to have a moisture content of 5% to 30% less than the fines stream.

In at least one embodiment, the dynamic comminution stage achieves pathogen reduction on the fines stream by stripping.

In at least one embodiment, the method further comprises adding a friable additive to the fines stream such that the friable additive is reduced in size and homogenized with the friable material to form a portion of the reduced size fraction.

In at least one embodiment, the friable additive comprises a pore former, a soil additive, a building material additive, a composting additive, a peat moss, or a glass product additive.

In at least one embodiment, the friable additive is introduced into the fines stream upstream of the dynamic comminution stage.

In at least one embodiment, the friable additive is introduced directly into the dynamic pulverizer as a stream separate from the fine particle stream.

In at least one embodiment, the separation stage comprises screening.

In at least one embodiment, the screening is performed using a trommel.

In at least one embodiment, the screening is performed using a vibrating screen.

In at least one embodiment, the separation stage comprises a single screen.

In at least one embodiment, the method further comprises: monitoring at least one feed parameter of the fines stream and/or an output parameter of the crushed material, oversized stream and/or undersized stream; and adjusting the single pass dynamic comminution stage based on the feed parameters and/or the output parameters.

In at least one embodiment, the at least one feed parameter comprises a feed rate of the fines stream and/or a composition of the fines stream.

In at least one embodiment, the at least one output parameter includes a dimensional property of a reduced-size fraction of the crushed stream, a composition of the crushed stream, a flow rate of the oversized stream, a flow rate of the reduced-size stream, a composition of the oversized stream, and/or a composition of the reduced-size stream.

In at least one embodiment, adjusting the single pass dynamic pulverizing stage includes adjusting a rotational speed.

In at least one embodiment, adjusting the single pass dynamic comminution stage includes adjusting a feed rate of the fines stream.

According to another aspect, there is also provided a method of treating a fine particle stream derived from waste material, comprising: providing a fine particle stream comprising a brittle material including glass, ceramic, drywall, tile, rock and/or aggregate and a ductile material including plastic; wherein the fine particle stream consists essentially of material having a maximum dimension of2 or 4 inches; subjecting the fine particle stream to a single pass dynamic comminution stage wherein the fine particle stream is fed into a dynamic pulverizer and undergoes self-collisions generated by vortex flow within the dynamic pulverizer to produce a comminuted material comprising a reduced size fraction derived from the friable material and an oversized fraction derived from the ductile material; taking out the crushed material from the power crusher; the crushed material is subjected to separation, producing a reduced size stream and an oversized stream.

In at least one embodiment, the fines stream originates from a source separated single stream Material Recovery Facility (MRF).

In at least one embodiment, the fine particle stream comprises between 40% and 60% glass, and the reduced size stream consists of more than 95%, 96%, 97%, 98% or 99% glass.

In at least one embodiment, the fines stream originates from a mixed waste recovery facility (MRF).

In at least one embodiment, the fines stream comprises between 50% and 70% organics and the reduced size stream consists essentially of organics containing up to 0.5-2% visible contaminants greater than 4mm in size.

In at least one embodiment, the fines stream originates from a composting facility and contains composting tailings.

In at least one embodiment, the reduced size stream consists essentially of organics containing up to 0.5-2% of visible contaminants greater than 4mm in size.

In at least one embodiment, the method further comprises adding a friable additive to the fines stream, reducing the size of the fines stream and homogenizing with the reduced size fraction.

In at least one embodiment, the friable additive is introduced into the fines stream upstream of the comminution stage.

In at least one embodiment, the friable additive is introduced directly into the power pulverizer.

In at least one embodiment, the method further comprises one or more features as described above.

According to yet another aspect, there is also provided a system comprising: a power pulverizer configured to receive and process a stream of fines to produce a pulverized material; a crushed material conveyor configured to convey crushed material downstream; a screen operably coupled to the crushed material conveyor and configured to receive the crushed flow and produce a reduced size flow and an oversized flow.

In at least one embodiment, the system further comprises: a Material Recovery Facility (MRF) that produces a fine particle stream; a fines conveyor configured to convey a stream of fines to the power pulverizer.

In at least one embodiment, the system further comprises one or more features as described above or herein.

In at least one embodiment, the method and/or system further comprises magnetically separating the fine particle stream prior to dynamic comminution.

In at least one embodiment, the method and/or system further includes dust collection associated with at least the crushed material exiting the dynamic crushing stage.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram for treating a waste stream, wherein dynamic comminution is used followed by screening.

FIG. 2 is a left side perspective view of a comminution apparatus according to an embodiment, showing a motor and housing for the comminution apparatus;

FIG. 3 is a right side perspective view of the comminution apparatus of FIG. 2 showing the outlet near the bottom end of the housing;

FIG. 4 is a bottom perspective view of the comminution apparatus of FIG. 2 showing a belt connection connecting the motor to the shaft;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the housing shown in FIG. 3, showing the rotatable shaft and rotor positioned within the housing;

FIG. 6 is a partially exploded view of the housing of the comminution apparatus shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a top cross-sectional view of the housing of the comminution apparatus shown in FIG. 2 illustrating a plurality of deflectors spaced about a rotatable shaft along a side wall of the housing;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the housing shown in FIG. 5 with the rotatable shaft and rotor removed, showing shelves (shelves) positioned at different heights within the housing along the side walls;

FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional view of a pulverizing rotor mounted within the housing of the pulverizing apparatus shown in FIG. 2, showing eddy currents generated within the housing;

FIG. 10 is a schematic top view of a housing showing overlapping vortices in the housing interior according to one embodiment;

FIG. 11 is a process flow diagram for treating a plurality of fines streams generated by a waste treatment facility wherein dynamic comminution is used followed by separation;

FIG. 12 is a process flow diagram for treating a waste stream using dynamic comminution followed by screening, further including a magnetic separation stage and a dust collection stage;

FIG. 13 is a process flow diagram of the treatment of a waste stream using dynamic comminution followed by screening, further including a dust collection stage;

FIG. 14 is a schematic side view of an exemplary magnetic separation stage;

FIG. 15 is a schematic side view of another exemplary magnetic separation stage.

Detailed Description

The treatment of the fine particle stream resulting from the waste treatment may include a single pass comminution stage through a power mill in which the friable material is reduced in size, ductile material is released and remains as an oversized fraction. The crushed material is then subjected to a separation stage, which may include screening, to separate oversized material from crushed size material. The separated oversized material (mainly plastics and other non-organic materials) may then be processed, converted to fuel, or further separated depending on its composition to recover the sub-fraction. The classified (sized) material may be reused in a variety of applications, for example, as a composting additive or feedstock, land applications such as topsoil, soil amendments, fillers, building material additives, etc., depending on its size and compositional properties. For some embodiments, the graded material may be subjected to additional treatments, such as composting or anaerobic digestion.

Referring to fig. 1, a fines stream 10 originating from the treatment of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) 12 and/or produced in a Material Recovery Facility (MRF) 14 is subjected to dynamic comminution 16, producing a comminuted output stream 18. The fine particle stream 10 comprises ductile material and a frangible material. The friable material is typically hard, brittle or friable, such that dynamic comminution facilitates significant size reduction, converting the friable material into a reduced size fraction. The friable material is reduced in size, e.g., converted to sand-sized or silt-sized particles, and homogenized with the crushed output stream 18. Examples of brittle materials include glass, ceramics, drywall, tiles, rock, and aggregate, as well as organics such as food and yard waste, in addition to wood, which is not necessarily hard but brittle and easily reduced in size. Ductile materials, on the other hand, are softer and cannot be significantly reduced in size by the dynamic comminution 16. Examples of ductile materials include plastic films, fibers, hard plastics, and soft plastics. Thus, the crushed output stream 18 includes a reduced size fraction and a greater ductile fraction that are comprised of crushed fractions.

The crushed output stream 18 may then undergo separation 20 to recover a reduced size stream 22 consisting primarily of crushed fraction and an oversized material stream 24 consisting primarily of a larger ductile fraction. The separation step 20 may be performed in more than one stage and a variety of separation devices may be used. For example, various types of screens may be used, such as a vibrating screen and/or a trommel screen. Other types of separation devices may also be used. The separation apparatus may be new and dedicated to the fines processing process described herein or may be part of an existing separation stage in the facility. In some embodiments, the crushed output stream 18 undergoes separation to produce more than two streams, which may have various characteristics that facilitate separation and enable downstream reuse or disposal. The separation stage may comprise, for example, a plurality of separators (e.g., sieves) arranged in parallel or in series.

For the feedstock supplied to the dynamic pulverizing stage 16, it may be a fine particle stream produced in the MRF and will typically be cleaned and not further treated or recovered. The MRF receives, separates, and prepares recyclable materials for marketing to end user manufacturers, and may be a single stream MRF with source separation or a mixed waste or "dirty" MRF. The composition of the fines stream may vary and depends upon the composition of the waste material received by the MRF and the processing equipment and operation of the MRF. For example, the feedstock may also be a fines stream within a composting facility or other type of waste treatment facility.

The following examples of raw fines streams may be treated using the methods described herein and used to produce reduced size streams. The feedstock includes a graded material that is pre-conditioned by a sorting and/or processing system, composting facility, or MRF, where the input is mixed waste (e.g., MSW), source separated recyclable (e.g., single stream), construction and demolition debris, yard waste, food waste, or other mixed waste streams. It should be understood that the MRF particulate feedstock described herein may include building and/or demolition debris in the mixed waste feedstock. However, it should be understood that in this specification, the term "MRF fines" does not include streams of building and demolition (C & D) fines that are considered to be recovered from the building and demolition debris recovery operation.

For mixed spent MRF fines, the average composition (% by weight) may be as follows: up to about 50-70% organics (e.g., yard waste, food waste, dust); about 10-15% cellulosic material (e.g., paper, diaper, tissue, etc.); about 8% to 12% or about 10% cullet; about 0.5% to 2% metal; about 10% -15% plastic (rigid plastic and film); and about 0% to about 2% fabric. These compositions may also change when there is little or no presence of more than one of the above-mentioned component classes. The reduced size stream produced by the mixed spent MRF fines may include an organic concentrated product containing 0.5-2% of visible contaminants (e.g., metals, glass, plastics) that are greater than 4mm in size. The capture rate of organics in the feedstock is about 60-85% depending on factors such as the screen configuration and material quality requirements. The oversized stream will be a mixture of contaminants (e.g., plastic, metal, glass) and a small amount of oversized organics.

For a single stream MRF fines/residue of source separation, the average composition (wt.%) may be as follows: about 70-80% cullet; about 0-5% organics (e.g., yard waste, food waste, dust); about 5-10% cellulosic material (e.g., paper, diaper, tissue, etc.); up to about 5% metal; about 5-10% plastic (rigid plastic and film); and about 0% to about 2% fabric. These compositions may also change when there is little or no more than one of the above-mentioned component categories. The reduced size stream produced by the single stream MRF fines of the source separation may include less than 50 mesh, less than 1% crushed glass from the non-glass article. The glass capture rate in the feedstock may be greater than 97% depending on factors such as the configuration of the screen and the material quality requirements. The oversized flow will be a mixed non-glass material.

For biomass compost tailings, the average composition (wt.%) may be as follows: about 65% to 75% biomass product; about 15-20% glass and aggregate; and up to about 5% plastic. The reduced size stream produced by the biomass compost screen sludge may include an organic concentrate containing 0.5-2% of visible contaminants (e.g., metals, glass, plastics) that are greater than 4mm in size. The capture rate of organics in the feedstock is about 70-80% depending on the screen configuration and material quality requirements. The oversized flow will be a mixture of contaminants (e.g., plastic, metal, glass) and oversized organics.

For building and demolition (C & D) fines, the average composition (% by weight) can be as follows: about 50-70% aggregate (e.g., rock, brick, concrete, ceramic, glass, soil); about 5% cellulosic material (e.g., paperboard, fiberboard, paper); about 5-15% wood; about 20-40% gypsum; about 0.5-1% metal; about 5% plastic. The reduced size stream produced by the C & D fines may comprise an inert soil-like concentrate containing up to 0.5% of visible contaminants (e.g., metals, glass, plastics) that are greater than 4mm in size. The waste stream may be a mixture of visible contaminants (e.g., plastic, metal, glass) and oversized organics (e.g., wood).

Additionally, the fines stream 10 may be fed directly to the dynamic pulverizing stage 16 without pretreatment (e.g., drying pretreatment) because the dynamic pulverizer is able to effectively process wet feed material. For example, the moisture content of the fines stream may be up to 50% or between 10% and 40% and may be fed directly to the dynamic pulverizer without pre-drying. For a more humid fines stream having a moisture content of over 50%, a pre-drying step may be performed to dry the material to a moisture content of less than 50%.

The process contemplates a variety of feed materials. One example feedstock is a mixed or complex stream of material, typically from municipal, commercial or industrial solid waste, that has been pretreated or screened to remove recyclable components and/or items of limited use or negative value exceeding 2 inches (although less than 3 inches, less than 4 inches, or more are possible), which is typically discarded. Example types include screen postings from mixed waste treatment facilities, single stream recirculation facilities, construction and demolition debris treatment facilities, and composting facilities, which contain a combination of hard/brittle and soft/ductile components-commonly referred to as "fines", "waste", or "residual" material. Another example starting material is glass, including glass panes and/or laminated glass, wherein the crushing stage allows release of the glass and film laminate in a single pass, which is then separated in one step by classification (sizing) and separation equipment. Another example feedstock includes compost tailings, wherein the comminution stage allows for recovery of clean organic components in one step by conventional classification equipment. Composting sludge is a compost material (finished or unfinished) that contains some plastic film and glass, so it can benefit from a size reduction process, homogenization of the size reduced particles, release of oversized material, and separation facilitated by the present method, removal of oversized plastic and obtaining valuable size reduced material.

For the power comminution stage, a single power mill may be implemented and operated as a single pass stage. For example, the feedstock may be fed to an upper portion of a power mill that includes a drum with baffles and an internal rotating rod with a plurality of arms that create a vortex within the drum chamber. The feed enters the vortex and undergoes self-collision to reduce the size of the brittle material. The material is conveyed to the bottom zone of the dynamic pulverizer and exits as a pulverized output stream 18 via a lower outlet. The rotational speed may be between 500RPM and 1,200RPM or between 600RPM and 1,100RPM or between 700RPM and 1,000RPM and may be adjusted or maintained relatively constant in response to other process parameters. In some embodiments, the rotational speed is adjusted to control the size and quality of the output material.

In some cases, the process, the power comminution stage 16, and/or the power pulverizer 50 may be operated in a continuous mode or a semi-batch mode. The material may also be crushed in a single pass or using multiple passes through the dynamic crusher 50. When multiple passes are used, crushed material from a first pass may be screened and only a portion of it fed through a subsequent pass. More generally, certain materials or fractions may undergo multiple pulverizing stages, which may be accomplished by recycling in the same powered pulverizer 50. Each pass through the dynamic pulverizer 50 may be performed under the same or different operating conditions (e.g., rotational speed, feed rate), wherein the change in operating conditions is determined based on, for example, the feed composition of each pass.

The dynamic comminution stage not only allows targeted reduction of the size of the friable material, but also promotes drying and pathogen reduction, resulting in a higher quality output stream. For example, the overall process including dynamic comminution and separation may produce a graded material having a moisture content 30% (or 15% to 25%) lower than the feed waste material. In some embodiments, the comminution stage reduces the moisture by 5-8%, and then the separation stage enables the fractionated fraction to have a further reduced moisture content. In addition, the pulverizing stage can promote air stripping of the feedstock material, thereby reducing pathogens.

The dynamic comminution stage 16 may facilitate the utilization of kinetic energy, eddies, and material-to-material collisions to achieve size reduction of the friable material, homogenization of the friable material, release and separation of ductile material, blending of additivable additives, drying, pathogen reduction. For flow-mixed materials, moisture, pathogens, etc., having certain characteristics-single pass dynamic comminution may facilitate efficient processing and recovery of the material.

For the crushed output stream 18, in some embodiments, the crushing stage 16 produces a range of dust size particles to larger particle materials, most of which (e.g., greater than 50% or between 50% and 70% or even greater than 90%) pass through a 3/8 inch screen. Oversized materials include a lower density, flexible fraction of the feedstock, while comminution of fragile materials (brittle, hard, brittle) homogenizes the reduced-size fraction to facilitate its release and separation from the larger ductile fraction by various separation techniques, including screening. The oversized fraction may consist essentially of plastic material and may also include other materials, such as fibers, films, metals, etc.

For the separation stage 20, the oversized fraction may be separated from the fractionated fraction using a size-based separation technique (e.g., screening). Various types of mechanical screens may be used for screening, such as vibrating screens, trommel screens, and the like. The mechanical screen may be configured or operated based on the composition and size distribution of the crushed output stream 18 to facilitate separation of the classified fraction and the oversized fraction from one another. Sieves may be provided to facilitate or maximize high purity or high yield of oversized streams (e.g., plastic), or to facilitate other parameters associated with the separate streams 22, 24. The separate streams 22, 24 may then undergo further processing and recovery, if desired.

In some embodiments, the separation stage 20 and the comminution stage 16 may be coordinated such that operation of one may affect the other. For example, the screens and crushers may be monitored and controlled by the controller 26 to achieve desired parameters, such as certain properties of the separate streams 22, 24. For example, if a change in the input feed causes the pulverizer to produce a larger classified fraction in the pulverizing stream 18, the screen may be controlled accordingly to facilitate some desired separation. In addition, the pulverizer may be controlled, such as by controlling the motor 28 to increase the rotational speed, to bring the graded fraction back within the target range, thereby promoting the desired separation. Monitoring instrumentation (e.g., inlet detector D _I and outlet detector D _{O 32}) may be provided to monitor properties (e.g., size distribution, composition, mass, and/or volumetric flow rate) of the flow. For example, depending on the classified product to be produced, sieves and dynamic disintegrators may be operated and designed in some manner to produce a product having the largest size. When glass is the primary component of the graded material, the screen may be 50 mesh and the dynamic pulverizer is operated to reduce the glass size below 50 mesh. When organics are the major component of the classified material, the screen may be 3/8 inch or 1/2 inch. For example, for composting applications, the screen may be 1/2 inch or 1/4 inch. However, it is noted that the screen design may be market driven to provide various size distributions of the size reducing material.

In some embodiments, conveyor systems are used to transport multiple streams between stages to facilitate continuous operation, although other conveyance methods may be used. The process may be continuous, intermittent or run according to other schemes depending on the facility and other factors.

With respect to the power shredder, it is noted that the unit can have various structural and operational features. In some embodiments, the power pulverizer may have more than one feature as described in PCT/CA2019/050967, which is incorporated herein by reference.

As shown in fig. 2-10, a shredder 50 is shown according to one embodiment. The shredder 50 is adapted to receive input material as described herein and to shred or grind the input material.

It should be understood that the terms "comminuting", "grinding" as used herein refer to a reduction in the size of particles in the input material.

In the illustrated embodiment, the shredder 50 includes a base 52 and a housing 60 mounted above the base 52. Specifically, the housing 60 includes a bottom end 62 coupled to the base 52 and a top end 64 opposite the bottom end 62. The housing 60 is hollow and includes a housing sidewall 66 extending between the top end 64 and the bottom end 62 to define an interior chamber 68 in which comminution occurs. Specifically, the housing 60 includes an inlet 70 at the top end 64 to receive input material and an outlet 72 at the bottom end 62 through which the crushed material can be discharged once the material is crushed in the inner chamber 66. In the illustrated embodiment, the outlet 72 allows the pulverized material to exit tangentially to the housing sidewall 66. It should be appreciated that the outlet 72 may be configured differently. For example, the outlet 72 may be located in a bottom surface of the housing 60 such that the crushed material may be discharged downwardly from the housing 60 in an axial direction. It should also be appreciated that the outlet 72 may alternatively be positioned generally toward the bottom end 62, but may not be precisely positioned at the bottom end 62 of the housing 60. Similarly, the inlet 70 may not be positioned precisely at the top end 64 of the housing 60, but may be positioned generally toward the top end 64.

In the illustrated embodiment, the housing 60 is generally cylindrical and defines a central housing axis H extending between a top end 64 and a bottom end 62 of the housing 60. The housing 60 is adapted to be arranged such that the central housing axis H extends substantially vertically when the shredder 50 is in operation. In this configuration, the input material fed into the inlet 70 will eventually tend to fall by gravity toward the outlet 72.

In the illustrated embodiment, the airflow generator 100 includes a pulverizing rotor assembly 102 disposed within the inner chamber 68 and a rotary actuator 104 operatively coupled to the pulverizing rotor assembly 102 for rotating the pulverizing rotor assembly 102 to generate an airflow. Specifically, the shredder rotor assembly 102 includes a rotatable shaft 106 positioned within the interior chamber 68 and extending along a central housing axis H between the top end 64 and the bottom end 62 of the housing 60, and a plurality of shredder rotors 108a, 108b, 108c secured to the rotatable shaft 106 that rotate about the central housing axis H as the rotatable shaft 106 rotates.

Each pulverizing rotor 108a, 108b, 108c includes a rotor hub 120 and a plurality of rotor arms 122 extending outwardly from rotor hub 120 and toward housing sidewall 66. Rotatable shaft 106 extends through rotor hub 120 such that rotor arm 122 is disposed in a plane of rotation R extending orthogonally through central housing axis H. In this configuration, as rotatable shaft 106 rotates, rotor arm 122 is thus maintained in and moves along rotation plane R. Alternatively, the rotor arms 122 are not all arranged in a plane of rotation, but may be arranged at an upward or downward angle relative to the rotatable shaft 106. In yet another embodiment, the rotor arm 122 may alternatively be pivotally connected to the rotatable shaft 106 such that the rotor arm 122 is selectively angled up and down as desired, manually or automatically using more than one arm actuator.

In the illustrated embodiment, the plurality of airflow deflectors 200 includes six deflectors 200 that are substantially similar to each other and are substantially evenly spaced apart from each other in azimuth direction about the central housing axis H (i.e., along the circumference of the housing sidewall 66). Alternatively, all of the deflectors 200 may not be similar to each other, may not be evenly spaced apart from each other and/or the shredder 50 may include more or less than six deflectors 202. For example, the shredder 50 may include between two and eight deflectors 200.

In the illustrated embodiment, each deflector 200 is elongated and extends substantially parallel to the housing axis H. Specifically, since the housing 60 is positioned such that the central housing axis H extends substantially vertically, the deflector 200 also extends substantially vertically.

As best shown in fig. 6-8, each deflector 200 includes a top end 202 positioned toward the top end 64 of the housing 60 and a bottom end 204 positioned toward the bottom end 62 of the housing 60. In the illustrated embodiment, each deflector 200 is positioned so as to intersect the plane of rotation R of upper pulverizing rotor 108a and intermediate pulverizing rotor 108 c. More specifically, top end 202 of deflector 200 is located above upper pulverizing rotor 108a, while bottom end 204 of deflector 200 is located below intermediate pulverizing rotor 108c, and deflector 200 extends continuously between top end 202 and bottom end 204 thereof.

It should be appreciated that rotation of rotor arm 122 will cause air within inner chamber 68 to move outwardly toward housing sidewall 66. In the above configuration, as best shown in fig. 9 and 10, because deflector 200 is horizontally aligned with upper and intermediate pulverizing rotors 108a and 108c, air will be moved outwardly by upper and intermediate pulverizing rotors 108a and 108c against deflector 200, and thus deflected by deflector 200, creating vortex V.

In the illustrated embodiment, each deflector 200 is generally wedge-shaped. Specifically, each deflector 200 has a generally triangular cross-section and includes a deflection surface 206 that faces the airflow when rotatable shaft 106 rotates, and an opposite deflection surface 208 that faces away from the airflow. The airflow-facing deflection surface 206 and the opposing deflection surface 208 extend away from the housing sidewall 26 and converge toward each other, meeting at an apex 210 directed toward the central housing axis H. The airflow-facing deflection surface 206 is inclined at a first deflection angle θ1 relative to the inner surface 34 of the housing sidewall 26, and the opposite deflection surface 208 is inclined at a second deflection angle θ2 relative to the inner surface 74 of the housing sidewall 76.

In the illustrated embodiment, each deflector 200 is symmetrical about an axis of symmetry S extending along a radius of the housing 60. In this embodiment, the first deflection angle θ1 is thus substantially equal to the second deflection angle θ2. The first deflection angle θ1 and the second deflection angle θ2 may be equal to about 1 to 89 degrees, more particularly about 30 to 60 degrees in one embodiment. Alternatively, the deflector 200 may be asymmetric, and the first deflection angle θ1 and the second deflection angle θ2 may be different from each other.

In the illustrated embodiment, the apex 210 of each deflector 200 is spaced radially inward from the inner surface 74 of the housing sidewall by a radial distance of about 7 ³/₄ inches or about 20 cm. Still in the illustrated embodiment, the apex 210 is also spaced radially outwardly from the tip 130 of the rotor arm 122 by a radial distance of between about 1/2 inch (or about 1 cm) and about 2 inches (or about 5 cm). In one embodiment, the radial distance or "clearance space" between the tip 130 of the rotor arm 122 and the apex 210 may be selected such that the vortex V may be formed as desired as the rotatable shaft 106 rotates.

Alternatively, the deflector 200 may have a different shape and/or size. For example, deflection surface 206 and opposing deflection surface 208 facing the airflow may not be planar, but may be curved. In another embodiment, deflector 200 may not include opposing deflection surface 208. In yet another embodiment, the deflector 200 may have a rectangular cross-section instead of a wedge shape, or may have any other shape and size as would be appropriate by a skilled artisan.

Fig. 10 is a schematic view of the vortex V generated within the inner chamber 68 when the shredder 50 is in operation.

During operation of the shredder 10, the rotatable shaft 106 rotates about the housing axis H such that the rotor arms 122 form a circular air flow that rotates about the housing axis H. As shown in the example of fig. 10, rotatable shaft 106 rotates in a clockwise direction when viewed from above to create a counter-clockwise flow of air in inner chamber 68.

Rotatable shaft 106 may be rotated at a relatively high speed to provide a desired crushing effect in the crusher. In one embodiment, rotatable shaft 106 rotates at a speed of between about 700rpm and about 1100rpm, and more specifically, between about 1000rpm and about 1100 rpm. Alternatively, rotatable shaft 106 may be allowed to rotate at different rotational speeds that create vortices as described below.

The airflow travels entirely along the inner surface 34 of the housing sidewall 66, but is interrupted by the airflow-facing deflection surface 206 of the deflector 200, which airflow-facing deflection surface 206 cooperates with the rotor arm 122 (and more particularly with the tip of the rotor arm 122) to form a vortex V. As shown in fig. 10, the vortex V may also be directed inwardly back toward the central housing axis H by an adjacent deflector 200'.

Still referring to fig. 10, each vortex V also overlaps at least one adjacent vortex V1, V2 such that the input material particles suspended in the vortex V collide with the input material particles suspended in the adjacent vortex V1, V2. More specifically, each vortex V created generally includes an outwardly moving portion 500 and an inwardly moving portion 502, the outwardly moving portion 500 being generally defined by the airflow circulating from the shaft 106 toward the housing sidewall 66, and the inwardly moving portion 502 being generally defined by the airflow circulating from the housing sidewall 26 toward the shaft 106. As shown in fig. 10, the outwardly displaced portion 500 of each vortex V overlaps the inwardly displaced portion 502 of the first adjacent vortex V1 and the inwardly displaced portion 502 of each vortex overlaps the outwardly displaced portion 500 of the second phase adjacent vortex flow V2.

In this configuration, the input material particles in the vortex flow thus collide with the input material particles in the vortex flow V that move twice the movement speed of the input material particles. For example, in one embodiment, the vortices V, V, V2 rotate at about one third of the speed of sound. When the particles of input material from the first and second phase adjacent vortex streams V1, V2 collide with the particles of input material suspended in the vortex V (which move at the same speed but in opposite directions), the particles will collide with each other at about two-thirds of the speed of sound.

In one embodiment, in addition to the impingement of the input material particles by the airflow and vortex V, as rotatable shaft 106 rotates, the input material may also be pulverized by rotor arms 122 striking the input material particles in inner chamber 68. In this embodiment, the combined effect of the input material particles impinging on each other in the overlapping vortices V, V, V2 and the rotor arm 122 impinging on the input material particles may increase the efficiency of the pulverizer. In addition, since the overlapped vortex V causes particles to collide with each other instead of the surface inside the housing 20, abrasion of the inner parts of the housing 20 can be reduced.

It should be appreciated that for ease of understanding, the vortex V shown in fig. 9 and 10 is a simplified vortex, in practice, the vortex V may not be exactly circular as shown or located exactly as shown in fig. 10.

In the illustrated embodiment, the shredder 50 also includes a plurality of shelves 300a, 300b extending inwardly from the housing sidewall 26. Specifically, the plurality of racks 300a, 300b include an upper rack 300a and a lower rack 300b spaced downwardly from the upper rack 300 a. Each shelf 300a, 300b extends circumferentially about the housing axis H and along the housing sidewall 26. It should be appreciated that the shelf thus extends substantially orthogonally to the deflector 200. Specifically, the deflector 200 extends entirely parallel to the housing axis H, and thus the deflector 200 can be considered to extend in the axial direction relative to the housing 60, while the shelf can be considered to extend in the azimuthal direction relative to the housing 60. In the illustrated embodiment, the deflector 200 extends generally vertically, while each of the shelves 300a, 300b is disposed in a generally horizontal plane and thus extends generally horizontally.

In the embodiment shown, each shelf 300a, 300b extends substantially continuously around the housing sidewall 66. Alternatively, the shelves 300a, 300b may not extend continuously around the housing sidewall 66, but may include a plurality of shelf segments spaced apart from one another, thereby defining a gap between adjacent shelf segments.

In the illustrated embodiment, upper rack 300a is substantially horizontally aligned with upper pulverizing rotor 108a and lower rack 300b is substantially horizontally aligned with intermediate pulverizing rotor 108 c. Alternatively, each shelf 300a, 300b may be located slightly below the respective pulverizing rotor 108a, 108 c.

In the illustrated embodiment, each shelf 300a, 300b includes a shelf top surface 302 that extends downwardly and away from the housing side wall 66. In particular, since the shelves 300a, 300b extend along the housing sidewall 66 and about the housing axis H, the shelf top surface 302 is substantially conical. Still in the illustrated embodiment, the shelf top surface 302 is at an angle between about 1 degree (shelf top surface 302 will be nearly flat against the housing side wall 66) to about 89 degrees (shelf top surface 302 will be nearly orthogonal to the housing axis H) relative to the housing side wall 66. In one embodiment, the shelf top surface 302 may be inclined at an angle between 30 degrees and 60 degrees relative to the housing side walls 66.

The racks 300a, 300b are configured to deflect upward the airflow directed to the racks. This allows the input material particles to be temporarily held in suspension above the racks 300a, 300 b. Thus, the incoming material particles may be subjected to the swirling flow for a longer period of time and crushed by impact with the rotor arm 122, thereby further reducing the size of the incoming material particles as they travel down the next rotor stage or outlet 72.

The upward deflection of the airflow may further facilitate the vortex V within the inner chamber 68. More specifically, as shown in fig. 9, the vortex V may rotate (i.e., rotate up-down) in a plane substantially parallel to the housing axis in addition to rotating in a plane orthogonal to the housing axis H as shown in fig. 10. Thus, the combined action of the shelves 300a, 300b and deflector 200 helps to form a three-dimensional vortex V such that air within the vortex V moves along a three-dimensional travel path, which may further promote collisions between particles of input material in adjacent, overlapping vortices V.

This configuration also allows the number of vortices V generated by the deflector 200 to be multiplied by the number of shelves 300a, 300b in the housing 60. For example, in the illustrated embodiment, the shredder 50 includes six deflectors 200 that can create six vortices over each rack 300a, 300b, such that there are a total of 12 vortices in the overall inner chamber 68.

The pulverizer may be sized and dimensioned to handle a single pass treated fines stream. For example, the pulverizer may be sized to process 5 to 20 tons per hour, or 10 to 15 tons per hour of a waste stream comprising a mixture of components as described above, while producing streams of one or more output sizes as described herein as a single pass subunit operating at a rotational speed between 500RPM and 1,200RPM.

Referring to fig. 11, a power pulverizer 50 for single pass operation may also be provided and capable of processing a variety of different feedstocks without operational changes or with changes in rotational speed and/or feed rate alone. For example, the dynamic pulverizer 50 may be implemented in a large facility 1000 that produces a plurality of different fines streams A, B, C to pulverize the fines streams at different times and produce corresponding output streams that may be separated, either in one screen or separately in individual screens designed for a given feedstock and end product to be produced. Thus, a single power pulverizer 50, along with more than one screen, may be implemented in a facility that produces multiple residual fines streams A, B, C, facilitating the production of various end products. Fig. 11 shows a facility 1000 that receives waste 1002 and produces recycled material 1004, and a plurality of fines or residue streams A, B, C that are supplied to respective tanks or storage locations 1006. Or one of the fine particle streams is supplied to the pulverizer 50 and optionally combined with a friable additive 1008 as described above. The pulverizer produces a pulverized output stream that is supplied to a respective screen A, B or C to produce a respective reduced-size material. In this manner, a single pulverizer may be used to upgrade multiple fines streams produced by the waste treatment plant 1000.

Referring now to fig. 12, in some embodiments, the method includes a magnetic separation stage 2000 upstream of the dynamic comminution stage 16 to capture ferrous metal from the fine particle stream 10. The separated metal 2002 may be supplied as scrap metal for resale or disposal. The lean metal fines stream 2004 may be fed to the dynamic comminution stage 16. The magnetic separator can be designed and operated to remove impurity metals having a high weight density, reducing wear and damage of KP (dynamic pulverizer). For example, the magnetic separator may be provided based on the nominal size of the feedstock and iron-containing objects that need to be removed. For example, a magnetic separator may be provided to ensure removal of high weight, high solids iron-containing objects in an overall small volume. While some geometries, such as flat plates, may have little impact on KP operation, other geometries, such as blocks, slabs, etc., may increase wear and damage, so the magnetic separation stage 2000 facilitates their removal to enhance downstream processing. The magnetic separator may be configured according to the size of the feedstock, the size of the ferrous objects, and the depth of the feedstock. The magnetic separator may be actively controlled or simply opened to effect separation. The magnetic separation stage 2000 advantageously reduces the risk of wear and damage to the KP stage 16 and also transfers more scrap to the landfill by recycling scrap metal material.

The magnetic separation stage 2000 may use various types of magnetic separators, which may be selected based on feedstock and throughput. For example, the magnetic separator may be a dry magnetic separator or a wet magnetic separator depending on the moisture content of the feedstock. The magnetic separator may have a magnetic field strength designed to remove target ferrous objects that may be problematic for the KP stage 16. The magnetic separator may also include a permanent magnet and an electromagnetic magnetic separator. The magnetic separator may also have a variety of design and structural features such as drum, roller, disc, ring, belt, etc. Depending on the design and configuration of the system and feedstock, the magnetic separator may also use a constant, alternating, pulsating or rotating magnetic field. The magnet itself may be composed of a variety of materials.

Although magnetic separation is the preferred mechanism for removing metal from a feedstock, there are a variety of other metal removal methods that may be used in place of or in addition to magnetic separation. The additional metal removal stage may be designed to remove non-ferrous metals, for example, particularly metal chips that have a high weight density and are therefore relatively heavy and thick. In some embodiments, a metal removal process (e.g., magnetic separation) is performed to remove all metal fragments having an average diameter of 1 inch or more. Bulk or elongated metal chips are removed, and optionally metal chips having a flat plate shape are removed.

Referring now to fig. 13 and 14, two example configurations of a magnetic separation stage 2000 are shown. Fig. 13 shows a belt magnetic separator 2006 that includes a self-cleaning magnetic belt 2008 located above a conveyor 2010. Magnetic strip 2008 discharges ferrous metal into a tank 2012. The magnetic tape 2008 may be mounted to a magnet frame 2014 that spans the conveyor 2010. Fig. 14 shows an alternative configuration that includes a fixed magnet 2018 on a track 2020, the track 2020 being mounted above the conveyor 2010 and configured to move back and forth.

Still referring to fig. 12, the system may further include a dust collection stage 3000 for recovering dust as part of the crushed output stream 18 exiting the KP stage 16. The crushed output stream 18 enters a dust control stage 3000 that recovers the dust stream 3002 and produces a dust reduced crushed stream 3004, the dust reduced crushed stream 3004 being fed to a separation stage 20. The dust collection stage 3000 facilitates dust control and may include various units such as settling chambers and baghouses or cyclone units.

As shown in fig. 13, the dust collection stage 3000 may include a dust collector 3006, the dust collector 3006 coupled to an outlet of the KP stage 16, and may include a settling chamber 3008, the settling chamber 3008 having a dust outlet 3010 at a top thereof. The dust outlet may be in fluid communication with a dust recovery unit 3014 via a conduit 3012, the dust recovery unit 3014 comprising a baghouse or cyclone filter unit 3016 with a dedicated motor 3018. The dust recovery unit 3014 may also include a dust recovery container 3020 that receives dust from a baghouse or cyclone filtration device via, for example, a hopper.

Settling chamber 3008 can receive all of the output from KP stage 16, and thus receive relatively fine particles deposited on outfeed conveyor 3022, such that the fine particles are added to the diverted output. The fine particles settle on the outfeed conveyor 3022 while very fine dust particles accumulate and are removed from the sediment through the dust outlet 3010. The settling chamber 3008 may extend part or the entire length of the outfeed conveyor 3022, depending on the process design and the target level of dust control. As the KP unit may be subjected to vibrations, the settling chamber 3008 may communicate with the outlet of the KP unit via a flexible pipe member.

The amount of dust in the crushed output stream 18 is highly dependent on the type and dryness of the raw material supplied to the KP stage 16. For example, an output transfer rate of up to about 30% has been observed for some feedstocks, while for MWS fines, the transfer rate is much lower. For raw materials such as C & D materials, the transfer rate will be higher.

Notably, the power and suction of the dust collection stage 3000 can be adjusted to increase the amount of material captured in the dust collector. For example, the dust recovery unit 3014 may be controlled to provide a desired suction force in the dust collector 3006. Thus, the dust collection stage 3000 may be designed and operated as a tool to separate the output material from the KP stage 16. It should also be noted that the dust collector 3006 may also pick up relatively light plastic films, which may thus be separated by both the separation stage 20 and the dust collection stage 3000.

Still referring to fig. 13, baghouse or cyclone 3016 captures the finer and lighter materials and can store them in a container 3020. The fine recycled material 3024 may be added back to the diverted output stream, processed, and/or retained as a fine product for sale. The fine recycled material 3024 may be recycled back into more than one stage of the system. Preferably, the fine recycled material 3024 is supplied to the reduced dust stream 3004 or the reduced size stream 22, or is retained as a separate product stream that can be sold or mixed with other materials to provide a commercial product. Notably, the recovered dust material can be handled, transported, and used in a variety of ways, some of which are described herein.

Experiment

Comparative experiments were performed on MRF fine grained material obtained from MSW handling plants. MRF fines used as feedstock are below 2.5 inches, allowing the materials and samples to be processed in a dynamic pulverizer and grinding device as described hereinUndergo a size reduction. The reduced size fraction was then screened 1/2 inch to obtain a screened fraction and an oversized reject fraction. A comparative test was performed using a vibrating screen.

The quality and yield of the fractions screened were significantly higher with KP compared to the mill equipment, in terms of observations and results. Furthermore, less organic material is reported in oversized reject fractions when KP is used than in mill equipment.

For example, when KP is used, the reject rate in the screened fraction is 11%, whereas when a mill is used, the reject rate is 21%. This means that unwanted materials are excessively reduced in size by the mill so that they tend to pass through the screen together with the wanted material, thereby making the quality ratio KP of the product poor. KP, in contrast, facilitates the release and separation of such undesirable substances, resulting in a higher quality screened product. In the test, KP promotes the production of an amount of undesired material that is almost half of the screened fraction compared to the mill test.

In addition, when KP is used, the proportion of man-made objects (e.g. glass, ceramic, plastic, etc.) in the waste material is 4.5%, whereas when a grinder is used, it is 8.1%. This suggests that KP is able to reduce the size of the hard man-made material to be included in the screening fraction, whereas the mill is unable to achieve this size reduction, so that the weight percentage of man-made objects reported in the oversized fraction is greater.

Thus KP is able to reduce the size of organics and hard man-made objects such that almost 90% of the input MRF fines are reduced in size and contained in the screened product fraction. With KP, the fraction with oversized losses of organic matter are very small, thus improving the recovery of organic matter from the final product.

The following table provides a more detailed overview of comparative test results with size distribution and contaminant composition data. The test results demonstrate that there are several advantages to using KP to treat the feedstock (e.g., MRF fines).

As can be seen from the table, KP is able to achieve a size distribution with a higher proportion of smaller particles than in the mill. For example, when KP is used, 75% of the screening material has a particle size below 2mm, whereas only 29.5% of the screening fraction of the mill has a particle size below 2mm. Furthermore, the proportion of total plastic decreases due to the screening of reduced size materials using KP, while for reduced size materials using grinders the proportion of total plastic increases. When screening reduced size materials using KP, the film plastic is significantly reduced because the film plastic is released rather than excessively reduced in size, while the proportion of film plastic remains unchanged after screening reduced size materials using a grinder. Generally, the contaminant concentration is lower when KP is used for the size reduction stage.

Claims (76)

1. A method of treating a fines stream in a Material Recovery Facility (MRF), the method comprising:

providing an MRF fines stream, the MRF fines stream comprising:

Brittle materials including glass, ceramic, drywall, tile, rock, and/or aggregate; and

Ductile materials, including plastics;

Subjecting the MRF particulate stream to a single pass dynamic comminution stage wherein the particulate stream is fed into a dynamic pulverizer and undergoes self-collisions by eddy currents within the dynamic pulverizer to produce a comminuted material comprising a reduced size fraction derived from the friable material and an oversized fraction derived from the ductile material;

Taking out the crushed material from the power crusher;

The crushed material is subjected to separation, producing a reduced size stream and an oversized stream.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the fines stream is derived from Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) or source separated recyclables.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the fines stream is a compost reject stream.

4. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the fine particle stream comprises material having a size of less than 2 inches.

5. The method of any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the power pulverizer operates at a rotational speed of between 500RPM and 1,200RPM.

6. The method of any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the power pulverizer operates at a rotational speed of between 700RPM and 1,000 RPM.

7. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the dynamic pulverizer is operated such that the reduced size fraction is substantially sand-or silt-sized particles.

8. The method of any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the fine particle stream has a moisture content of 10% to 50% upon entering the dynamic pulverizer.

9. The method of any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the fine particle stream has a moisture content of 15% to 40% upon entering the dynamic pulverizer.

10. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the fines stream does not undergo a drying stage upstream of the dynamic comminution stage.

11. The method of any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the reduced size fraction is a homogeneous mixture in the crushed output stream.

12. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the dynamic comminution stage effects dewatering of the fine particle stream such that the dewatering in the dynamic comminution stage is between 5% and 8%.

13. The method of any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the dynamic comminution stage and separation enable the reduced size stream to have a moisture content of 5% to 30% less than the fines stream.

14. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the dynamic comminution stage achieves pathogen reduction on the fines stream by stripping.

15. The method of any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein the method further comprises adding a friable additive to the fine particle stream such that the friable additive is reduced in size and homogenized with the friable material to form a portion of the reduced size fraction.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the friable additive comprises a pore former, a soil additive, a building material additive, a composting additive, a peat moss, or a glass product additive.

17. A method according to claim 15 or 16, wherein the friable additive is introduced into the fines stream upstream of the dynamic comminution stage.

18. A method according to claim 15 or 16, wherein the friable additive is introduced directly into the dynamic pulverizer as a stream separate from the fine particle stream.

19. The method of any one of claims 1 to 18, wherein the separation stage comprises screening.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein screening is performed using a trommel.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein screening is performed using a vibrating screen.

22. The method of any one of claims 1 to 21, wherein the separation stage comprises a single screen.

23. The method of any one of claims 1 to 22, wherein the method further comprises:

monitoring at least one feed parameter of the fines stream and/or an output parameter of the crushed material, oversized stream and/or undersized stream; and

The single pass dynamic comminution stage is adjusted based on the feed parameters and/or the output parameters.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the at least one feed parameter comprises a feed rate of the fines stream and/or a composition of the fines stream.

25. The method of claim 23 or 24, wherein the at least one output parameter comprises a dimensional property of a reduced-size fraction of the comminution stream, a composition of the comminution stream, a flow rate of an oversized stream, a flow rate of a reduced-size stream, a composition of an oversized stream, and/or a composition of a reduced-size stream.

26. The method of any one of claims 23 to 25, wherein adjusting the single pass dynamic pulverizing stage comprises adjusting a rotational speed.

27. The method of any one of claims 23 to 25, wherein adjusting the single pass dynamic comminution stage comprises adjusting a feed rate of the fines stream.

28. A method of treating a fines stream derived from waste, the method comprising:

Providing a fines stream comprising:

Brittle materials including glass, ceramic, drywall, tile, rock, and/or aggregate; and ductile materials, including plastics;

Wherein the fine particle stream consists essentially of material having a maximum dimension of 2 or 4 inches;

subjecting the fine particle stream to a single pass dynamic comminution stage wherein the fine particle stream is fed into a dynamic pulverizer and undergoes self-collisions generated by vortex flow within the dynamic pulverizer to produce a comminuted material comprising a reduced size fraction derived from the friable material and an oversized fraction derived from the ductile material;

Taking out the crushed material from the power crusher;

The crushed material is subjected to separation, producing a reduced size stream and an oversized stream.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the fines stream originates from a single stream Material Recovery Facility (MRF) of source separation.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the fine particle stream comprises between 40% and 60% glass and the reduced size stream consists of more than 95%, 96%, 97%, 98% or 99% glass.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein the fines stream originates from a mixed waste recovery facility (MRF).

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the fines stream comprises between 50% and 70% organics and the reduced size stream consists essentially of organics containing up to 0.5-2% visible contaminants greater than 4mm in size.

33. The method of claim 28, wherein the fine particle stream originates from a composting facility and comprises composting tailings.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the reduced size stream consists essentially of organics containing up to 0.5-2% of visible contaminants greater than 4mm in size.

35. A method according to any one of claims 28 to 34, wherein the method further comprises adding a friable additive to the fines stream, reducing the fines stream size and homogenizing with the reduced size fraction.

36. A method according to claim 35, wherein the friable additive is introduced into the fines stream upstream of the comminution stage.

37. The method of claim 35, wherein the friable additive is introduced directly into the power pulverizer.

38. The method of any one of claims 1 to 37, wherein the method further comprises subjecting the MRF fines stream to magnetic separation, removing ferrous metal therefrom, producing a metal-lean feed stream, feeding the metal-lean feed stream to the single pass dynamic comminution stage.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein the magnetic separation is performed by one or more magnetic separators configured relative to the feed of MRF fines.

40. The method of any one of claims 1 to 39, wherein the method further comprises subjecting the crushed material to a dust collection stage from which a dust fraction is recovered and a dust reduced crushed stream is produced, the dust reduced crushed stream being fed to separation, producing a reduced size stream and an oversized stream.

41. A method according to claim 40, wherein at least a portion of the dust fraction is combined with at least a portion of the reduced size stream.

42. The method of claim 41, wherein all dust fractions are combined with the reduced size stream.

43. The method of any one of claims 40 to 42, wherein the dust collection stage comprises:

A dust collector coupled with respect to an outlet of the single pass powered comminution stage or with respect to a solids conveying device configured to convey the comminuted material away from the single pass powered comminution stage; and

A dust recovery unit coupled to the dust collector and configured to cause separation of dust and transport a dust fraction from the dust collector to the storage container.

44. The method of claim 43, wherein the dust collector comprises a settling chamber.

45. A method as in claim 44, wherein the dust recovery unit comprises a baghouse in fluid communication with the settling chamber via a conduit.

46. A method according to claim 44, wherein the dust recovery unit comprises a cyclone separator in fluid communication with the settling chamber via a conduit.

47. The method of any one of claims 43 to 46, wherein the solids conveying device comprises a conveyor.

48. The method of any one of claims 43 to 46, wherein the dust collector surrounds the solids conveying device along a majority of a length of the solids conveying device.

49. The method of any one of claims 28 to 48, wherein the method further comprises one or more of the features recited in any one of claims 1 to 27.

50. A system, the system comprising:

A power pulverizer configured to receive and process a fine particle stream to produce a pulverized material;

a crushed material conveyor configured to transport crushed material downstream; and

A screen operatively coupled to the crushed material conveyor and configured to receive the crushed flow, producing a reduced-size flow and an oversized flow.

51. The system of claim 50, wherein the system further comprises:

a Material Recovery Facility (MRF) that produces a fine particle stream; and

A fines conveyor configured to convey a stream of fines to the power pulverizer.

52. The system of claim 50, wherein the fines stream originates from Municipal Solid Waste (MSW).

53. The system of any one of claims 50 to 52, wherein the fines stream comprises material having a size less than 2 inches.

54. The system of any one of claims 50 to 53, wherein the power shredder is configured to operate at a rotational speed between 500RPM and 1,200RPM.

55. The system of any one of claims 50 to 53, wherein the power shredder is configured to operate at a rotational speed between 700RPM and 1,000 RPM.

56. The system of any one of claims 50 to 55, wherein the system further comprises a charging unit for adding the friable additive to the fine particle stream such that the friable additive is reduced in size and homogenized with the friable material to form a portion of the reduced size fraction.

57. A system according to claim 56 wherein the friable additive comprises a pore former, a soil additive, a building material additive, a compost additive, peat moss or a glass product additive.

58. The system of claim 56 or 57, wherein the charging unit for adding the friable additive is located upstream of the power pulverizer.

59. The system of claim 56 or 57, wherein the charging unit for adding the friable additive is operably coupled to the power pulverizer.

60. The system of any one of claims 50 to 59, wherein the screen comprises a trommel screen.

61. The system of any one of claims 50 to 59, wherein the screen comprises a vibrating screen.

62. The system of any one of claims 50 to 61, wherein the screen comprises a single screen device.

63. The system of any one of claims 50 to 62, wherein the system further comprises:

A monitoring unit configured to monitor at least one feed parameter of the fines stream and/or an output parameter of the crushed material, the oversized stream, and/or the undersized stream; and

A control unit coupled to the monitoring unit and configured to adjust the power pulverizer in accordance with the feed parameter and/or the output parameter.

64. The system of claim 63, wherein the monitoring unit and the control unit are configured such that the at least one feed parameter comprises a feed rate of the fines stream and/or a composition of the fines stream.

65. The system of claim 63 or 64, wherein the monitoring unit and the control unit are configured such that the at least one output parameter comprises a size property of the reduced size fraction of the comminution stream, a composition of the comminution stream, a flow rate of the oversized stream, a flow rate of the reduced size stream, a composition of the oversized stream, and/or a composition of the reduced size stream.

66. The system of any one of claims 63 to 65, wherein the control unit is configured to adjust the rotational speed of the power shredder.

67. The system of any one of claims 63 to 66, wherein the control unit is configured to adjust a feed rate of the fine particle stream into the dynamic pulverizer.

68. The system of any one of claims 50 to 67, wherein the system further comprises a magnetic separator to remove ferrous metal from the fines stream, producing a lean metal feed stream that is fed to the power pulverizer.

69. The system of any one of claims 50 to 68, wherein the system further comprises a dust collection unit configured to recover a dust fraction from the crushed material and to generate a dust reduced crushed stream, the dust reduced crushed stream being fed to the screen.

70. The system of claim 69, wherein the dust collection unit is configured to supply at least a portion of the dust fraction to combine with at least a portion of the reduced-size flow.

71. The system of claim 69 or 70, wherein the dust collection unit comprises:

a dust collector coupled with respect to an outlet of the powered shredder or with respect to the shredder feed conveyor; and

A dust recovery unit coupled to the dust collector and configured to cause separation of dust and transport a dust fraction from the dust collector to the storage container.

72. The system of claim 71, wherein the dust collector comprises a settling chamber.

73. The system of claim 72, wherein the dust recovery unit comprises a baghouse in fluid communication with the settling chamber via a conduit.

74. The system of claim 72, wherein the dust recovery unit comprises a cyclone separator in fluid communication with the settling chamber via a conduit.

75. The system of any one of claims 43 to 46, wherein the dust collector surrounds the power shredder along a majority of its length.

76. The system of any one of claims 50 to 75, wherein the system further comprises one or more features of any one of claims 1 to 49 or as described herein.